The Name on the Byline
by Mistiquecats
Summary: "Not as trippy as the name on the byline," What if Caitlin never suggested looking at the name? What would happen if Barry didn't know about the whole Iris West-Allen future shrap? (Yes I've watched season 5) Rated T for Eddie's death (if you know what I'm talking about, if you don't, don't read this it spoils things) One-Shot!


**So you know, it's a Saturday afternoon, I'm sitting on my bed, scrolling through Pinterest after reading some stories on , the norm. But then I see an image of The Flash when they first see the future news article thingy and I think, "oh my gosh, what if Caitlin never said anything about the name?" and then, "What if Barry never found out about the Iris West-Allen thing?" and then this idea to write a story to flood my stress on fanfiction just happened and… here I am!**

**This will only be a one-shot so…**

There the three of them were, after learning that the man they all looked up to for a long time was not the guy they thought, but the guy who killed an innocent boy's mother. Caitlin stood in shock, right next to Barry who was looking at it as if he'd seen a ghost. She scanned her eyes through the article. There were different sections about "Red Skies Vanish" and something about two businesses merging or something like that.

"Barry, look at the date," Caitlin said softly in her moment of shock, seeing it said April 25, 2024.

"Guys, when I fought the Reverse-Flash at Christmas, he said that we'd be fighting for centuries," Barry said, focusing on that memory while also mesmerized by the glowing article in front of him.

"Wait, you can't really think that this is from…" Caitlin paused to take a deep breath, trying to wrap her head around the fact that there were future artifacts in front of them talking about her friend's death, "the future," she finished, looking at the two other people in the small room.

"That would mean Dr. Wells, or whoever he is, is also-" Cisco started, his eyes widening slightly.

"From the future," Barry finished, his eyes still glued to the article.

"I have to say, I'm really digging the brighter red suit," Cisco started, his voice coming out a little easier as he half-attempted to lighten up the mood, "And the white on the symbol? That's dope," Cisco's eyes suddenly flashed as a thought crept into his mind, "wait a second. Supposed we now change the color of your suit. Will it be because we got the idea from this picture? That would mean we're living in a causal nexus. This-wow-" Caitlin didn't hear the end of that sentence. She zoned out when she really looked at the byline.

"Iris West-Allen," the byline said. Caitlin had to blink a few times to actually make sure she wasn't imaging it or accidentally seeing two words mashed together. But it was, with a hyphen.

"-the Polaroid trippy," Cisco stated, Caitlin only hearing the end of his sentence. Caitlin almost stated what she discovered, but then she thought for a minute. What if Barry told Iris or Eddie that Iris was bound to end up with him? Would they break up just because of a future article, instead of a legitimate reason one or both of them had in the actual future? So she kept her mouth shut, knowing that Barry might not even look at the writer of the life-changing screen in front of them.

Later, Eddie gets kidnapped and Wells, or Eobard they'd later learn, told him the plans. Eddie saw the article and instantly saw Iris West-Allen. He didn't let it bring him down, however. It was like it gave him more of a motivation to try and break out and actually propose to the woman he loved.

Once they rescued Eddie, Iris found the ring and gasped in astonishment, holding back tears. Eddie was recovering and he and Iris walked to their apartment, hand in hand. Iris had proposed to Eddie using the ring he wanted to give her.

Before they could really plan their wedding, Eddie had saved them all by ending his own life to kill the Reverse-Flash, knowing Eobard was from the future and was his distant relative.

**Yes, that was pretty short. But it couldn't have been that long, right? I love the idea of Iris proposing to Eddie, it makes me very happy.**

**I hope you guys enjoy this! Review! Give me ideas! I love to hear your suggestions!**


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